VIDEO: Phillies fans give Tony Gwynn Jr. standing ovation in first at-bat since death of his father

As Tony Gwynn Jr. made his way to the plate Tuesday night in his first at-bat since the death of his Hall of Fame father, the Phillies' outfielder was holding back tears as the crowd at Citizens Bank Park gave him a standing ovation.

Gwynn's pinch-hit at-bat came in the eighth inning of a 7-4 victory over the Marlins at Citizens Bank Park.

"Needless to say, it was pretty awesome," Gwynn said via MLB.com. "Made the at-bat a little more difficult, had to fight the emotion and the tears and stuff like that. But that's why guys who play here like to play here. When things are going well or regardless of whether they're going bad or good, I think the fans stay behind us. Much appreciated by the Gwynn family."

Gwynn's father of course is the late legendary San Diego Padres outfielder Tony Gwynn Sr. who passed away on June 16. Gwynn Sr. was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2007 as a nearly unanimous selection.

Tuesday was Gwynn Jr.'s first game back from the Phillies bereavement list and. His at-bat resulted in a ground out to first base, but Gwynn said that the ovation and circumstances of the past week evoked emotions he had never previously felt on the baseball diamond.

"It was really hard. Really hard," Gwynn said. "I was fortunate enough to get two balls to regroup a little bit, but I've never been through anything like that before. Under these circumstances, it was even tougher, but like I said, it was much appreciated."